The present invention relates to a fluid directional control device for a solenoid valve assembly, which is mounted on the solenoid valve assembly in which a plurality of solenoid valves for diverting pressure fluids are placed side by side and connected together in a width direction thereof for supplying and exhausting the pressure fluids to/from the assembly together.
A solenoid valve assembly in which a plurality of solenoid valves are placed side by side and connected together, and in which pressure fluids are supplied to or exhausted from the solenoid valves together in order to centrally control a plurality of actuators is well known. In general, a supply/exhaust block for supplying and exhausting the pressure fluids together to/from the solenoid valves is mounted on the solenoid valve assembly, pipe joints are each mounted on a supply port and an exhaust port of the supply/exhaust block, and a fluid supply tube or a fluid exhaust tube is connected to each of the pipe joints.
In this type of solenoid valve assembly, when checking the operation for maintenance or alignment of an actuator connected to the solenoid valve assembly, it is desirable that pressure fluids such as compressed air are manually supplied to or exhausted from the solenoid valve assembly while confirming the safety in order to determine whether the operation is proper.
On the other hand, although a switching valve or a directional control valve is generally provided in any part of a piping connected to the supply/exhaust block so as to divert the pressure fluids, it is not for use for the operation check as described above and has not a structure appropriate for the above usage.
Thus, easy-to-handle means for diverting fluids, in which the control for checking the operation is easy to perform and also which can be easily mounted on or removed from a predetermined location when necessary.
It is a technical object of the present invention to provide an easy-to-handle fluid directional control device for a solenoid valve assembly, which satisfies the above conditions, in which checking the operation is easy to perform, and also which can be easily mounted on or removed from a predetermined location when necessary.
In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, there is provided a fluid directional control device for a solenoid valve assembly, which is assembled in the solenoid valve assembly in which a plurality of solenoid valves are connected together, and having a supply/exhaust block which supplies and exhausts pressure fluids together to/from the solenoid valves, and a manual directional control valve detachably mounted on the supply/exhaust block for manually diverting the pressure fluids.
The supply/exhaust block has a supply-side connection port and an exhaust-side connection port arranged side by side in the vicinity, a fixing bracket inserting groove cut in the right and left side portions of the connection port train in a manner so as to cross part thereof in a perpendicularly crossing direction with respect to axes of the connection ports, and a generally U-shaped fixing bracket inserted in the fixing bracket inserting groove.
In addition, the manual directional control valve has: a cylinder-shaped supply-side connecting section and a cylinder-shaped exhaust-side connecting section each inserted in the connection port; locking grooves each formed on an outer periphery of each connecting section and in which the fixing bracket is locked; a supply port and an exhaust port communicated with each connecting section via a valve mechanism; two pipe joints detachably mounted on each port by being inserted; a fixing bracket inserting groove cut in the right and left side portions of the port train in a manner so as to cross part thereof in a perpendicularly crossing direction with respect to axes of the ports; and a generally U-shaped fixing bracket inserted in the fixing bracket inserting groove.
Furthermore, each of the pipe joints has on a periphery thereof a locking groove in which the fixing bracket mounted on the directional control valve is locked.
The present invention is constructed in such a way that a connection structure for connecting each connecting section of the directional control valve to each connection port of the supply/exhaust block and a connection structure for connecting the pipe joints to each port of the directional control valve are the same, and the pipe joints can be each mounted on the connection port of the supply/exhaust block in place of the directional control valve.
The fluid directional control device having the above construction is used by being mounted on the solenoid valve assembly. When used normally for centrally controlling an actuator by the solenoid valve assembly, the manual directional control valve is removed from the supply-side connection port and the exhaust-side connection port of the supply/exhaust block, alternatively, the pipe joints are each mounted on the connection ports, and a pressure-fluid supply tube and a pressure-fluid exhaust tube are connected to the pipe joints, respectively.
On the other hand, when testing for checking the operation of the solenoid valve assembly, the pipe joints are removed from the supply-side connection port and the exhaust-side connection port of the supply/exhaust block, while the manual directional control valve is mounted on the connection ports, and the pipe joints are connected to the supply port and the exhaust port of the directional control valve so that the pressure fluids are supplied to the supply/exhaust block via the directional control valve.
While supplying or exhausting the pressure fluids together to/from each solenoid valve of the solenoid valve assembly by manually operating the directional control valve, and while checking the operation of each solenoid valve by operation indicator lamps each provided for the solenoid valves, the overall operation of a fluid pressure device controlled by the solenoid valve assembly is checked. In the event of emergency etc., the pressure fluids can be exhausted together to secure the safe operation.
In the present invention, as described above, since the connection structure for connecting each connecting section of the directional control valve to each connection port of the supply/exhaust block and the connection structure for connecting the pipe joints to each port of the directional control valve are the same, and the pipe joints can be mounted on each connection port of the supply/exhaust block in place of the directional control valves, the directional control valve and the pipe joints can be easily and swiftly replaced when checking the operation is required.
According to an embodiment of the present invention, the directional control valve has: a supply channel for connecting the supply port and the supply-side connecting section together; an exhaust channel for connecting the exhaust port and the exhaust-side connecting section; a communicating path for communicating the channels with each other at an intermediate position; a supply valve seat provided on the way of the supply channel; a communicating valve seat provided between the supply channel and the communicating path; a valve member disposed between the supply valve seat and the communicating valve seat, which operates in a manner so as to close the communicating valve seat when opening the supply valve seat and to open the communicating valve seat when closing the supply valve seat; and a control lever for manually switching the valve member.